New Approaches to Environmental Harm

If someone with experience of mediation walked into an environmental restorative justice meeting, they might find the process familiar - and at the same time unfamiliar, maybe even a little unnerving. 

Most familiar would be that restorative justice processes are guided, like most mediations, by a common aim - resolving differences through facilitated dialogue. The visitor would also recognise the significance of the facilitator’s role in managing that process.

What at first sight might be less familiar is the way the room is set out. Typically there are no tables to sit behind, whether for parties or facilitators, but chairs arranged in a circle. The participants are dressed down, first names are commonly used and the atmosphere is less formal than is usual in mediation. 

Another unexpected feature is that any professional representatives in the circle are not there to advocate for their clients. They may of course speak in the same way that each participant is given opportunities to contribute in the course of the process. 

Who might participate in an environmental restorative justice (ERJ) meeting around, for example, the contamination of a river? They will necessarily include those said to have caused the environmental harm, and those who say they’ve been affected as a result. The category of those harmed might also include neighbouring property owners, river users, environmental groups, communities and even those downstream. 

More unfamiliar might be who and what else might be present. Sometimes this will include spokespeople, often experts, to represent plant and animal life. There may be those speaking on behalf of other natural features such as sacred land, and those representing future generations.

And in a theme that is absent from many mediation processes, participants are asked to describe not only their perception of what happened, but their feelings about it. The idea of inviting discussion of feelings might be particularly unfamiliar to some commercial mediators.

“So why” a mediator might ask “is this useful for me? I already mediate disputes around land and other resources – what could ERJ add?” 

Possible answers to that question may be found in the Practice Guide for Environmental Restorative Justice published recently by the European Forum for Restorative Justice.

The Guide is to be launched in the UK online on Wednesday 3rd June from 12.00 to 1.00pm. Register here. 

It aims to show what ERJ is, what it can offer and why it is successful. Examples of how it is working in practice around the world can be found in the Case Studies in Chapter 6 of the Guide. 

Some of the particular characteristics of ERJ processes include: 

• an emphasis on thorough preparation for parties so as to be ready in advance of meeting other parties in plenary session
• provision for management of large numbers of participants and disparate groups.
• structures to encourage engagement of all who have a stake in the issues, and give space for all to be heard.
• potential to address the wider impact of the issues, asking “Who and what else has been affected?” and explore the underlying causes of the conflict. 

The Guide offers fresh options for designing dispute resolution processes, and addressing elusive issues that are rarely explored. And with a growing focus on climate change and environmental justice the Guide describes different approaches and new perspectives in resolving conflicts around land, resources and the environment.